“Don’t think, ‘My fastest days are behind me’ or ‘I can’t do hard things anymore.’ I think that’s false.” – Albert Shank on The Extramilest Show #126
Coach Albert Shank is still running strong, climbing mountains, and proving that your best running years don’t have to be behind you. Albert shares powerful lessons on low heart rate training, Zone 2 running, strength training, injury prevention, recovery, and longevity.
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Topics covered:
- 0:00 — Introducing Albert Shank
- 1:55 — Somnus Lab Sponsorship
- 2:57 — How to enjoy running for decades
- 3:43 — Albert’s 58K Grand Canyon birthday adventure
- 4:10 — How Albert discovered low heart rate training
- 9:12 — Advice for new low heart rate runners
- 15:17 — What Albert understands about MAF training now
- 17:01 — Heavenly Heat Saunas Sponsorship
- 18:07 — Common mistakes in low heart rate training
- 25:01 — How to coach athletes in early frustration phase
- 28:35 — Adjusting for heat, stress, sleep, and illness
- 30:00 — Albert’s current running and injury recovery
- 32:06 — How heart rate zones change with age
- 34:36 — Strength training for healthy aging
- 40:12 — Daily movement habits that build strength
- 46:00 — Keeping heart rate low on hills
- 50:18 — Treadmill vs outdoor running for heart rate training
- 51:27 — Weekly volume for runners over 40
- 54:29 — Cross-training for longevity
- 57:05 — Keeping running joyful and playful
- 59:55 — How training changes in your late 50s
- 1:13:55 — Cycling heart rate vs running heart rate
- 1:22:17 — Low heart rate running and keto: pros & cons
- 1:25:07 — Your best running years may not be behind you
- 1:29:23 — The advice Albert repeats most often
- 1:30:17 — Where to find Albert
- 1:30:59 —How to become a stronger, healthier, happier athlete
A few quotes from my conversation with Albert Shank:
- “Make sure you do your workout today in a way that allows you to do your workout tomorrow.”
- “When you obsess so much about keeping your heart rate under this number, you lose sight of the fact that you’re doing this for enjoyment.”
- “Love what you do and train in a way that you can sustain over the course of months, years, decades.”
- “If you do not have your health, you don’t have anything.”
- “One of my biggest mistakes is letting the ego get in the way.”
- “If runners slow down most of their runs, ironically, they’re going to get faster.”
Hope you enjoy this new video, CLICK HERE to watch it.
Cheers,
Floris Gierman
This episode is also brought to you by Somnus Lab! Ryan Hall and I talked a lot in this episode about recovery and doing the work to come back stronger — but none of that happens without quality sleep. The Somnus Lab Cooling Sleep System is a temperature-controlled pad that sits on top of your mattress and lets you dial in the exact sleep temperature for your body. I’ve found that sleeping cooler helps me fall asleep faster, stay asleep longer, and wake up feeling more recovered. It also has dual-zone control, so you and your partner can each set your own temperature. If you’re training hard and still waking up tired, your sleep environment is likely the problem — Somnus Lab is the fix. Use code FLO for 10% off at somnuslab.com.
This episode is brought to you by Heavenly Heat Saunas! I’ve been using a sauna consistently for over a decade, and it’s become one of the highest-leverage recovery tools in my routine, especially after hard runs, long trail days, and heavy lifting sessions. I’ve been using a Heavenly Heat infrared sauna at home, and I love how clean and simple the setup is. It heats the body directly, uses low EMF technology, and is built with high-quality materials like Canadian hemlock wood. If you’ve been thinking about adding a sauna to your training routine, this is a great place to start. Use code FLO to get 6% off at heavenlyheatsaunas.com.
